Choice

Li Yuan's heart suddenly tightened.

He looked at the Duke, then turned to look at the Duchess beside him.

The Duchess's eyes were still slightly red, but the gaze she directed at him actually held an inexplicable, subtle sense of anticipation.

Reinhardt simply turned his head away, pretending he hadn't seen a thing.

Li Yuan suddenly felt a slight chill run down his spine.

He really wanted to clarify things, but the Duke's expression was far too formal. If he actually asked, it would make it seem as if he were the one thinking in a strange direction.

Although he did feel that his own thoughts seemed to be quite far apart from theirs... he still chose to keep his mouth shut.

In the end, he could only manage a nod and accept the gold coin card.

“I will... do my best.”

Only then did Duke Sebas reveal a satisfied expression.

“With those words of yours, I can rest easy.”

Li Yuan felt more and more that something was amiss.

But the Sebas family did not give him the opportunity to keep pondering.

Before leaving, the Duchess held Setis's hand again, whispering a few quiet reminders. Setis merely nodded, looking completely normal.

A moment later, the Duke, the Duchess, and Reinhardt left the teahouse together.

Only he and Setis were left in the teahouse.

Once quiet returned, Li Yuan stood in place, staring at the door for quite a while before slowly walking back behind the bar counter.

He placed the gold coin card in a drawer and looked up at Setis.

“Did you explain things clearly to them?”

Setis nodded.

“Yes.”

Setis picked up her teacup, took a sip, and added:

“I only said that you saved me. As for the process, there was no way to explain it.”

This wasn't an intentional cover-up; she herself didn't really understand the underlying reason.

Setis only remembered being severely injured, and when she woke up, she was on that strange little island. As for what Li Yuan and Hui had done while she was unconscious, she was completely in the dark.

She hadn't asked either; as long as the outcome was good, that was enough.

Li Yuan nodded. Though it deviated slightly from his original intent, it wasn't too far off.

“This is for the best.”

Knowing too much about certain things might not be a good thing for them.

He walked over, refilled Setis's cup with black tea, and continued to ask.

“How has your body been feeling these past few days?”

Setis looked down at her palm and tried to clench her fist.

“There's no discomfort.”

She paused, resting her chin in one hand while shaking her head slightly.

“It's just that, starting from that day, I haven't been able to sense mana.”

Li Yuan nodded.

“That's normal.”

Setis looked up at him and continued.

“However, my physical strength has increased a lot.”

Her tone carried a hint of hesitation, as if she were judging whether her words sounded too exaggerated.

“I've tested it. In terms of sheer strength, I should be about equal to a Rank 3 warrior.”

Li Yuan wasn't surprised.

“This is only the beginning.”

Setis was slightly startled. Li Yuan set down his teacup and explained in a calm tone.

“Your body hasn't fully adapted to your current bone structure yet. Once this adjustment period passes, your strength, speed, and recovery ability will continue to grow. Even if you do absolutely nothing, relying solely on your physical body's strength, you will eventually reach at least the Heroic Spirit rank.”

Setis's eyes slowly widened. She felt as though she had just heard something that completely overturned her understanding of reality.

Li Yuan added another line.

“Your lifespan will also increase significantly.”

The teahouse fell silent for several breaths.

Only at this very moment did Setis truly realize, for the first time, just how massive a change had occurred in her body.

She had indeed felt herself growing stronger, but she had never imagined she would become strong to this extent.

Heroic Spirit rank—that was an existence standing at the very pinnacle of the entire Ogu Continent.

No matter how proud she had been in the past, she had never assumed she would definitely step into the Heroic Spirit rank. Reaching Rank 3 at less than twenty years of age was already enough to make her proud, but the Heroic Spirit rank was an entirely different concept.

Thus, she asked with some uncertainty.

“Even without cultivating, I can still reach the Heroic Spirit rank?”

“In terms of sheer physical strength, yes.”

Li Yuan nodded, his tone unhurried.

“But strength is just strength; whether you can use it well is another matter. Without the corresponding cultivation and state of mind to support it, a powerful body will only bring trouble instead.”

Setis fell silent.

She looked down at the black tea in her cup, her originally bright eyes gradually dimming.

Li Yuan looked at her and suddenly asked.

“What do you plan to do about the academy?”

Setis looked up, a trace of melancholy appearing on her face, but Li Yuan continued.

“Given your situation, you probably won't be able to return to the academy to continue your studies.”

Setis's grip on her teacup tightened slightly. She had long thought about this issue.

The Magic Department Special Class, being a magic warrior, the academy's wall of honor, and other such goals—things that had originally been so close to her—now suddenly felt incredibly distant.

She was currently unable to sense mana, which meant she could never use magic again. Even if her physical body became stronger, this was not the direction the academy originally trained its students in.

Continuing to stay there would only invite more trouble.

Moreover, the secrets she carried were not things that could be casually exposed.

Setis's eyes dimmed considerably, but she quickly looked up again.

“It's fine.”

She shook her head, as if trying to convince herself.

“In half a year... I should be used to it.”

In half a year, she would have her coming-of-age ceremony, advance to the third year, and begin to shoulder the responsibilities that a daughter of the Sebas family ought to bear.

She just hadn't expected that this day would ultimately never arrive, and that she was about to embark on a path completely different from before.

Li Yuan looked at her as she forced herself to remain calm, and nodded gently.

“Since that's the case, let's go.”

“Go?”

Setis had just looked up, and before she could even ask where, the teahouse in front of her eyes suddenly blurred.

In the next instant, the fragrance of tea in the air dispersed, replaced by an extremely dense spiritual qi.

When she regained her senses, the ground beneath her feet had turned into soft grass.

In the distance, the surface of the sea formed by the spiritual spring rippled with tiny waves in the faint light, and the small cottage in the courtyard stood quietly.

Setis stood frozen in place. She had been here before—that isolated island.

And at this moment, the white fox Hui was lying in the courtyard, her golden eyes half-open, as if she had been waiting for a long time.

Seeing the two of them arrive, she stood up and stretched.

“You're finally here.”

Hui walked over to Setis and circled around her a few times.

Setis felt a bit uncomfortable under her gaze, but this time she didn't show much resistance.

After everything that had happened, she already knew that although this white fox was a bit sharp-tongued, she was actually quite nice.

Hui's gaze swept over her entire body, thoroughly inspecting her, before pausing at the space between her brows for a moment.

After confirming that her physical condition was indeed good, she nodded with satisfaction.

“Little girl.”

Hui stopped in front of her, her tone carrying less of its usual playfulness.

“Have you thought it through? Do you really want to walk this path?”

Setis's expression froze.

Hui continued.

“Once you step onto the path of cultivation, you can never turn back. If you stop here, with your current body, even if you don't learn anything, you can still lead a happy and beautiful life.”

Her voice was not harsh, yet it was more earnest than anything she had said before—one could even call it solemn.

“You can return to the Duke's estate and continue to be your noble young lady. Whether you marry and have children in the future or inherit the family business, none of it will affect you. With this body, no one in this world can easily harm you, you will be immune to all diseases, and your lifespan will be longer than most people here.”